Abandoned
by SongSiren
Summary: Part One: Jim is accepted into the STA, the most prestigious flight Academy in the galaxy. Follow him through his years as a student, then as a first mate aboard a ship with an unruly cabingirl and an unknown quest in Part 2.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: I'm not going to bore you all with the author's note (though you probably are already bored) so read and enjoy!**

**All flames will be tossed into the hell pit that is my life.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Treasure Planet**

**Part One:**

**The Academy**

Quiet. It was abominably quiet in the small room. Actually, it was quite a large room, a library, really. The thing was, it was crowded so much with stacks of books, heaps of papers and masses of oddities than one could hardly find a suitable place to sit. More likely, one would sit on one of these stacks, heaps or masses and try to make oneself comfortable.

Jim Hawkins sighed, running a hand through his hair as he sat on a pile of books (which he had worked for the past the three days into something of a chair), trying to calm his nerves. Morph was sleeping quietly in the brown pants he wore, the same ones that he had kept since the (as it was now widely referred to among all who had come back from it) Voyage. He looked around the room at his companions.

Dr. Doppler sat near the fireplace, absentmindedly poking the flames. His mind was completely elsewhere, perhaps still flying around the stars. He really had developed a small sense of adventure in the short time that the journeyers had been home. Amelia was five feet above Doppler, sitting primly with her arms crossed on a stack of tall papers with a poise only one of her kind could manage. Her eyes were indiscernible and her mouth worked into a thin line. The only sign that she was nervous was that she continuously shifting the ring on her gloved finger. B.E.N., for once, took part in the silence and kept his robotic mouth shut, his thin bronze fingers fiddling. Jim's mother sat next to him, occupying the only chair. She nervously plucking at her locket's chain, every once and awhile casting her gaze around the room to her companions.

They were in Doppler's old home—Amelia and Doppler's new home, actually. The fire that had started in this very room a little less than a year ago had not damaged much, being put out quickly by the fire department (which was much closer to Doppler's than it was to Jim's mother's inn). The only thing that had suffered any real damage was Doppler's library. It had been replaced eagerly by neighbors, much to the relief of Jim and his mother, who had had to stay there while the Inn was being rebuilt (thanks to a generous contribution that had been brought back from the Voyage). Jim doubted his mother would have been able to stay there if it was empty, believing that she and Jim had brought this upon Doppler (though they had) even though that what had come of it was Doppler having the adventure of his life as well as finding, as he put it, 'his hormone's recognition of balance'. In other words, love.

So there they were, each in their respective places in the abominably quiet library, which was a part of Doppler's old home. They were waiting.

It was quiet.

Of course, just as Jim began to settle into the quiet, a sound assaulted his ears. For a millisecond, he was unsure about the noise, but then it registered in his ears. It was a knock. A simple, yet important knock.

Quickly, Jim's eyes scanned the room. For all the silence and stillness that was in the room a moment ago, it was magnified. Doppler's metal fire poker was literally turning red from being still in the heat for so long, Amelia might as well not been there (save for three deep claw marks in the papers that stretched thirty sheets down), B.E.N.'s metal jaw had silently opened in a kind of gasp, if his mother's chain could have, it would have screamed for the pressure being put on it from her yanking hand.

A moment later, Amelia was back to her old self. She turned her large eyes on Jim, "Well don't wait all day about it. Go see who it is."

Scowling internally at once again being ordered about, Jim rose and navigated his way through the room, to the hallway and then the front door. His insides were quivering as he opened the front door. The sight that met him almost made him smile with relief. It was not an officer, as he thought it would be, nor was it some stiff, ready to cart him off. It was just a girl, a teenage girl.

Mary, the young mail girl smiled prettily at him and flipped her brown hair. As she spoke, she blinked her eyes slowly and many times at Jim, feeding his suspicion that she had a slight infatuation with him. "Ah got sumthin 'ere for ye, Jim." She said, her voice thick with Montressor accent. She dug around the blue bag that hung from her thin waist for a moment, before handing Jim a thick, creamy white envelope. "Looks important, what's it all about?"

Jim gave her a half-ass smile. "Me going bigger places, hopefully." He muttered.

Mary seemed a bit put out that Jim had inadvertently insulted her home, but continued to attempt to draw him into conversation. "Well, I hope you don't go too far, I'd miss you."

Jim's attention was still on the envelope. "Yeah, yeah. I gotta go." Without another word, he slammed the door and ran back to the room.

All eyes were on him as his fingers shakingly opened the parcel. His eyes scanned the letter quickly, looking for the exact sentence he was searching for.

………_.. It is my pleasure to inform you that you have been accepted to the Deep Space Travel Academy…_

Jim didn't read the rest, but read that portion of a sentence until Amelia judged that he had had enough time to read.

"Well? What does it say?" She asked demandingly.

"I… I got in," Jim said, as he handed the note to the Captain, who read it with large eyes, as if suspecting him of lying.

There was a moment of silence after his announcement, and then a mighty cheer arose as Jim was enveloped in hugs. The commotion woke up Morph, who flew out to rub himself against anyone's cheek and gurgle to get attention.

As Jim tried (and failed) to pull B.E.N. off of him, he tried to get over his own astonishment. Him, the mess up kid with an attitude who was being arrested a few months ago, was going to the most prestigious flight school in the galaxy.

**A/n: Sorry about the short chapter, I'll try to do better. Anyway, hope you guys enjoy this. I've been trying to update all my fics before Christmas, and I only have 32 minutes to go! Review!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Well? Who liked it, who didn't? Come on, people, there's about five to seven hundred of you in the Treasure Planet viewer community (which isn't a lot considering this is a world wide site) so I need at least one of you to tell me if I'm murdering Treasure Planet.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Treasure Planet.**

"B.E.N.! Get out of my bag!" Jim yelled impatiently, pulling the robot out of his— actually, Doppler's— bag.

"Whhhaaa!" The robot yelled as Jim threw him backwards. As soon as he was able, though, he latched himself onto Jim's waist like a three year old, trying (but failing miserably) to look like one as he pouted and gave his case, "But… but, Jimmy, I thought we were best friends. You… you can't brave the STA all alone…"

"B.E.N.," Jim said with mock patience, "Do you know what the STA stands for?"

"Space Travel Academy, Jimmy o' buddy." B.E.N. beamed for getting something right.

"And do you know what the STA is?"

B.E.N.'s eyes faded out slightly as he collected data, then came back as he spoke with increasing eagerness, "As all boys school until five years ago, now the academy accepts girls, though at this present time there are only two hundred twenty in a school of seven hundred fifty one. Teaches young pilots, gunmen, first mates, and…"

"Exactly, and are you any of those things?" Jim said, crossing his arms.

"Erm… well that depends… I fiddled with those wires back on the ship…"

"Heh…Yeah, and almost got me killed!" Jim said, packing another set of pants (which looked exactly the same as every other pair of pants, because they were delivered to him when he came back from the Voyage. Fire did not make good soap) into his bag.

"Bububububububu…" B.E.N. began stuttering.

"Robot, cease your incessant blathering," both B.E.N. and Jim stood and straightened up, as if someone had magically replaced their spines (or, in B.E.N.'s case, spinal circuitry) as their former-captain entered the room. Amelia's clothes, though not the Captain's garb she usually wore, was still perfectly clean and neat, though odd to see on one who seemed disappear outside of her profession, like seeing a teacher outside of school. Her eyes flickered briefly to Jim's over-large, badly packed suitcase before turning back to the robot. "Out." This one word sent B.E.N. who, as a robot, was essentially impervious to any attack, scuttling out of them room like a beaten dog.

When there was no sign of the simpering robot, Amelia raised her fist to her mouth and gave a light cough, to ensure Jim's full attention. "Right… er… Jim Hawkins, I'm not particularly good at this sort of thing, but," Amelia's bright blue eyes softened, "I'm proud of you."

Jim was completely speechless. "Wha…"

Amelia gave him a little smile before straightening her hair and shirt. "Yes well, I decided that since you seem to be willing to grow up, and make no mistake, you shall mature most rapidly at the Space Travel Academy, I should give you back something you've lost."

Jim frowned; he had not lost anything, as far as he knew, "What did I…"

"This." Amelia reached into an invisible pocket and pulled something out.

Jim eyes grew wide as shaking hands reached for the object. He turned it over in his hands in wonderment as he gazed at his blurry reflection. It was amazing in his eyes, it was dangerous in the hands of the malicious, and it was destroyed. So what was it doing here?

"The map?" Jim gasped as his throat finally became unglued.

Amelia smiled. "I had Delbert take a look at it. Apparently, it has a built-in preservation instinct system. It probably felt the seismic vibrations from the exploding planet and moved itself to catch the ship as it passed. This thing is quite resourceful. Quite like its new owner." Jim's heart dropped. He looked up to Amelia's face to find her smiling warmly at him. "Mr. Hawkins, I hope that you will take good care of that little piece of machinery." She added in an undertone, "I'll say this once more, we're all very proud of you."

Jim nodded. "I won't let you down," he said in a detached voice.

Amelia frowned for a moment and leaned down speak to him. "Jim, he's not coming back."

Jim frowned. "I know," he responded quietly.

Amelia straightened and gave him one last concerned look before leaving.

Jim sighed and sunk down on the cot that his mother normally occupied. He turned the map over and over in his hands, thinking about everything and nothing; feeling the weight of the new responsibilities thrust upon him and the light bliss of complete happiness of one reaching one's goals.

Letting out a frustrated huff, Jim quickly moved his hands, pressing buttons at random and at the same time, casting his heart out like bait on a fishing line, wanting to see the stars. The neon green illumination that eerily lit the room was like a warm and comforting fire on a cold day.

Jim flopped back onto the bed and watched as the planets floated by in their little orbits, careless and free of all the worry set on him. He got into the Academy of his dreams; he was going to be a better pilot than his father ever was. This opportunity would open so many doors… which was exactly the problem.

Every time a door opened for him, it led to another and another. He never got to choose what was behind those doors besides the first step he took. It never ended. One goal was achieved, but now another was placed in front of him.

He would work the rest of his life! What happened to sailing the star blasts, wild and free, without a course and without treasure to run after? He did not know, but he sure as hell would not find out at this fancy school.

He sighed again. This school, however, would get him a place in the world, where he could make a name for him. He would not be forgotten after he died.

Finally, with his hopes fighting with his dreams, he fell into restless sleep.

**A/N: I actually like this chapter, even if it was short, but the question is, do you?**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Yeah… **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Treasure Planet.**

"Mom…"

"Hold on a second, hon. Now, where did I put that cake…" Ms. Hawkins began busily resuming her search for a cake that she had baked earlier.

"Mom…"

"Hmm… maybe B.E.N. took it… B.E.N.! Get down here!"

"Mom!" Jim exclaimed without raising his voice. He smiled gently to atone for it, "Mom, they're not going to let me take a cake on a ship."

Ms. Hawkins pouted slightly, "Well they should." Her face broke into a wide, warm smile that only mothers could have, "Jim, you're growing up so fast. I can still remember when you would bring home a lost space squid pup and…"

"Beg you to let me keep it. I know, Mom," Jim finished, rolling his eyes, though the corners of his mouth were twitching into a resisted smile.

Ms. Hawkins smiled wider. "I'm going to miss you." She pulled her son into the third hug of the day.

"Mom," Jim muttered with that adolescent-embarrassment.

Ms. Hawkins let go of her son for a moment and bustled around the house, looking for small scraps of clothing, pictures, or other odds and ends he might have left behind, blinking furiously as she did so.

Jim heard a small cough. Amelia stood behind him, having snuck up in that quiet, cat-like way. "Well, Mr. Hawkins," The Captain cleared her throat; "I suppose this is… goodbye." Her voice did not exactly crack on the final word, but it was not whole.

Jim shrugged and rubbed behind his head, "Yeah… I guess it is."

Amelia strode forward and put her hands on his shoulders, "You must remember, stay strong. You're a natural and as long as you don't go off and make dim-witted choices, you'll do fine."

Jim managed a sharp nod, his tongue unraveling after a few moments. "There's a note with the letter; if I have a valid reason, I can use the full-screen hologram so it's like I'm really there. Don't start the wedding without me."

Amelia returned the nod and walked, stiff backed and shouldered, into the small kitchen.

Jim heard Dr. Doppler's heavy tread and turned around to meet the man. The professor was trying, but failing, to clean his glasses on a shirt that he had stained with small amounts of clear oil, invisible to him because the same oil was covering his spectacles.

Jim rolled his eyes and sighed exasperatedly before taking the glasses and placing them under a drip in the ceiling. He allowed three drops to land on each lens before wiping them quickly on his sleeve. Meanwhile, Dr. Doppler had been muttering quickly about dropping his glasses and was dancing on his tiptoes, trying to avoid 'stepping' on them accidentally. Jim perched the glasses on Doppler's nose.

"Ah! Jim, just the boy… man I wanted to see. Have you seen Morph, I'm afraid he's stolen my shoes again and I don't want to embarrass you by going to the port in these…"

Jim looked down to see Dr. Doppler's furry toes wiggling through several holes in his gray socks. He chuckled lightly. "It's all right; I saw Morph put your shoes on the roof yesterday."  
Doppler began nodding quickly, "Ah very good… on the roof!" Doppler began running off in the direction of the closest of the three doors outside.

That crisis averted, Jim began to resume the morning's search for B.E.N. The night before, he had woken up in the dead on night to find B.E.N. trying to force his body into his bag. He had yelled at him, and the robot had run off somewhere, his eyes leaking oil. Now Jim had not seen his little friend all day and felt bad about the night before.

He searched the downstairs; the bathroom, the kitchen, the living room, the sitting room, the storage area, Doppler's workshop, and the library.

Then he searched the upstairs; the two bathrooms, the master's bedroom, Amelia's guest bedroom (which was still as made-up as it was the day they arrived; the only reason they still called it 'Amelia's room' was to preserve her honor), his mother's room, his small room, and the upstairs library (which was attached by stairs to the downstairs one).

Still, when it was time to go, and his family (for, after what they had gone through together, Amelia and Doppler could not be considered anything _but _family) were all waiting downstairs, shuffling their feet uncomfortably at the door, Jim had still not found B.E.N.

He sighed heavily and went to the door. His mother gave him a sympathetic book and promised to say good-bye to B.E.N. whenever he showed up. They left the room, piled into the doctor's rickety ship and headed for Montressor Space Port.

Where once Jim had looked around the port with wonder befitting a young boy in a candy shop, now he stood with the barest hints of interest as his companions darted to and fro, asking for directions. Well, at least Dr. Doppler and his mother did. Amelia stood with her usual dignity.

Still, Jim could not help but look about him at different ships. He could tell which ones were bound for disasters, where the incoming ships had been by the barnacles attached to the bottom of the ships. He could foretell which ships faced disaster by slipping deckhands and ropes too browned by age.

"Mr. Hawkins." Amelia said, not raising her voice to get his attention.

Jim's head snapped up from where he had been looking at an unsecured mooring line, resisting the urge to move forward and take it from the small green alien that was pawing at it in a sorry attempt to look busy.

"Your ship," Amelia said, raising a white-gloved hand and drawing the attention both of their companions.

"Oh Jim," Jim's mother breathed softly.

Jim's mouth hung open for a minute, before Amelia tapped the bottom of it smartly.

The ship was a gleaming example of military strength and sophistication. Painted richly, the vessel's deep color and shine that normally came with only new ships drew the eyes of most around. The ship itself was enormous, spanning its three-sided rectangular place in the dock completely. The sails were unfurled, though without the wind swelling them, they were only minutely less impressive. Three gangplanks on each side of the ship led out onto two of the side-docking areas. Upon them, young men and women (though comparatively few of the latter) walked after saying tearful good-byes to weeping mothers with white handkerchiefs and beaming fathers, sticking their chests out in pride.

Jim looked to his companions. All were smiling proudly, though his mother's eyes were welling with tears and even Dr. Doppler's looked a little watery. Finally, it was Amelia who was able to break the overwhelmed silence.

"Jim, congratulations."

Dr. Doppler's arms encircled the boy in a fierce hug, "I knew you had it in you, my boy." Quietly, he added, "Silver knew too. I think he knew before all of us."

Jim nearly choked. None of them had mentioned Silver since they had finished up telling Jim's mother about his escape. He allowed himself to relax a bit and return the doctor's embrace.

When Doctor Doppler pulled away, Amelia patted Jim on the shoulder, flashed him a smile, and pulled her fiancée away to give Jim and his mother some privacy.

Jim's mother stood in silence for a moment before flinging herself at him, sobbing out, "Oh Jim! I'm so proud."

"Mo-" Jim tried to unravel his mother's arms from his neck. "Mom!" Ms. Hawkins pulled away. Jim smiled and warmly hugged his mother, "I'm gonna miss you. I love ya' mom."

Jim's mother broke out into an all new set of tears, but not before she was able to choke out, "I love you too, Jim."

**A/N: Aww, how does everyone like that for mother's day?**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Hi everybody! Okay, so I just remembered that the It's not the STA that Jim should be going to, but the Interstellar Academy. I'll go back and change it sometime, but from this point forward, he's going to the Interstellar Academy. Sorry about the mix-up.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Treasure Planet. **

"Name?" the large, purple man with four arms asked Jim as he readied his quill and paper with two of the hands and snapped for a set of clothes with the other set.

"Jim Hawkins." Jim replied aptly.

Before him, there had been several students who had replied slowly and with only their first or last names (one had even thought to give a nickname). They had received a glare, a gruff push and mocking words when they were out of earshot from the purple signup man and the green clothing man. Jim could have sworn he received a slight smile before a pack of clothes bound in a canvas that would serve as his blanket and his new boots.

He was ushered along to his cabin, where he would stay for the two-week journey to the dwarf planet that the Interstellar was located on. Rough iron fittings in the shape of 456 glared down at him uninvitingly. Jim scowled back before entering.

The room was of the same dark wood that the rest of the ship was made out of. There was a wrought iron bunk bed in the upper right corner, next to a circular window that was barely one foot in diameter. Parallel to the beds was a simple desk, no more than a board of four legs, actually. There was no chair, but there were two chests in the room, one next to the desk and one at the end of the bottom bunk. Jim shrugged. He could always use one of those to sit on. Both the chests and desk were made of a much lighter and not as finely crafted wood, than that of the vessel.

Jim noticed that a pack and a pair of boots were set on the top bunk. _Looks like my bunk-mate is already aboard. _Jim thought. He dumped everything that he was carrying onto the bottom bed and sat. There really was not much to look at, but Jim could guess that before the trip was over, he would count the knots in the wood more than once.

He looked down at the clothes he had been issued. It consisted of a beige shirt with short sleeves, a dark pair of brown trousers, boots that were not unlike his own, standard pair, as well as a black coat with four over-large brown buckles on the front. They were not much, but it was good enough for him. _Might as well get dressed._

Jim stripped off his shirt, but before he could reach for the new one, it jumped away. At first, Jim did not really process what had happened. He had been so used to Morph stealing things at home, he was not surprised that the shirt had jumped away. But as he remembered that Morph was well on his way back home to Dr. Doppler's house and recoiled from the shirt in surprise.

There was a slight chuckling before a man appeared on the bed. "Ay, mate." The man moved out from under the bed. He looked like a giant green lizard; a Rettile of the reptilian order. The lizard laughed, "Ya jumped like a Rettilian jack-rabbit." He stuck out a hand, "Name's Gordon."

Jim shook his hand, a little disconcerted by Gordon's Rettilian accent. "Jim Hawkins."

"Ay, Jim, me messmate. I'ma goin to my sister's room ta see if she got in alright, you wanna come an' explore the hold?"

Jim smiled, already liking the Rettilian, and shook his head. "I'm going to change and get started on unpacking."

Gordon shrugged, his cheerful demeanor undeterred, "Ach, ya don't know what you're missin', mate."

The Rettilian left and Jim shook his head. _This is going to be an interesting two weeks. _He thought before quickly changing into his new clothes. Deciding against the black jacket, he rolled the deep green canvas out and stretched it tight across the bottom-bunk. Ever since he had decided to enter the Interstellar Academy, Amelia had come into his room every morning to make sure there was not a wrinkle in his bed. With the hard mattresses here, he thought he could bounce a coin off the bed.

Jim lay on the bed, closing his eyes momentarily. He could not believe that he had gotten into the most prestigious flight academy in the galaxy, perhaps the universe! And he had done it through pure talent! Granted, Amelia had contacted some people, but she had only told them of his feats and he had been taken into consideration. To think that his talent, which had gotten him arrested before, now allowed him to get an education!

He was sure that he would change his life. No more punk tricks, no more breaking the rules for the hell of it. From now onwards, he would stay in line and show everyone that he was going somewhere…

_Mmmpphh._

Jim sat bolt-right. What had that been?

_Mmmpph. Mop._

Jim's attention was brought to his bag, where it still sat at the foot of the bed. Warily, he watched as it moved and another noise was issued from it. The bag moved as if there was a wild animal in it. Jim carefully crept forward, a suspicion rising in his head. He unzipped the bag quickly.

Immediately, B.E.N.'s bronze heads popped out of the bag. He swiveled his head about until he caught sight of Jim, leaning back on the bed with his arms crossed, an I'm-waiting-for-an-explanation-and-it-had-better-be-good look on his face. B.E.N.'s green eyes widened expressively and he ducked his head back into the momentary safety of the bag.

"B.E.N.!"

"Ah-ha-ha," B.E.N. laughed nervously. "Hi Jimmy, looks like we're roommates, oh-buddy-oh-friend!"

"No it I throw you off the boat," Jim growled.

And, so, for the next few minutes, total chaos ensued. Just as Jim had started to push B.E.N. out of the window, a loud blast of a whistle could be heard. Jim paled and dropped the robot, muttering 'no no no' all the way to the door. As he stepped out into the hallway, he was pushed back into his room by a large, orange alien.

"Hey, kid. Stay in that room, we're about to take off and the captain don't want no movement till we engage the artificial gravity."

Jim grit his teeth and went back into the room, where he proceeded to have a freak out for a full fifteen minutes. When he finally was able to calm down for a few minutes, he began to repeat 'okay' until B.E.N. jumped on him.

"Get a hold of yourself, man," B.E.N. cried as he slapped Jim.

Jim caught his breath and pushed the robot off him. He spread his hands, his stance bent as if he expected to be set upon by the guards at any moment.

"Okay, okay," he panted, "this is what we're gonna do. We're gonna stay in this room until we make port in a week. Until then, we're gonna keep you hidden."

"But Jim, how am I going to report to the captain…"

"No! No one is going to see you!" Jim said, getting more and more stressed.

There was a click. The pair whirled around and watched as the door slowly opened. Jim was frozen in place as Gordon stepped into the room.

**A/N: Review!**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Hi!**

**I decided to do a story on deviantart. Anyone who likes my stories probably would like that, but I promise that this story is probably a lot better than the stories on fanfiction. My penname on there is 'elpmip' and keywords for it are 'fallon', 'warrior', 'moon', 'sun', and 'fortress'. You'll probably have to enter all of them in. After that, you will probably have to go into my gallery to find the prologue and read it in order. So, here's a summary:**

**Men have attacked the Fortress of Stars. After a night of terror and confusion, only a woman, Fallon, and her daughter escape the massacre. Alone and afraid, they flee to the Fortress of Stone.  
Now, Fallon must try to become a part of the Fortress' daily life, but the residents are scornful of both her and her daughter, who is more than meets the eye. At the same time, Fallon must wrestle with her depression from her husband's and her family's death. With no respite from either, Fallon slowly begins to question her faith and her sanity.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Treasure Planet.**

There was a long stretch of silence.

Jim was imagining how the Academy would throw him out. Would they sail back to Montressor space port? Or perhaps the captain would just throw him in the brig until the next time they reached a port? Gordon closed the door quickly behind him and walked around B.E.N., circling the android.

"Ey, mate. How'd ye sneak a robot in 'ere?"

Jim nervousness quickly turned to indignation. "I didn't sneak him in, he stowed away in my bag," he glared venomously as B.E.N., who gulped and hid behind Gordon.

Gordon chuckled. "Ach, dun be mad at the little robot, 'e probably only wanted to see the Academy. Can you blame him?"

Jim's heart softened a bit at Gordon's silver tongue. He sighed, rubbing his hand down his face from his forehead to his chin. He glared half-heartedly at B.E.N.. "All right, as long as there are no other suprises…"

B.E.N.'s face was a cross between a nervous smile and a frown, "Well, about that Jimmie…"

Before B.E.N. could utter another word, there was a slight gurgling sound and Morph floated to Gordon, copying his lizard-like figure. Gordon laughed good-naturedly as Jim steamed.

"Wh… what! Why… why would you two do this to me?" Jim asked angrily.

"Ach, don' yell at them, Jimmy. We kin 'ide them until we get to the Academy." Gordon beamed, "I'ma good hideer."

Gordon lifted B.E.N. from the ground and proceeded to run around the room for the next few minutes, trying to shove the shrieking, struggling robot into every nook and cranny that looked like a likely hiding place. Jim sighed and flopped back on the bed, trying to block out the noise.

As Gordon was trying to push B.E.N. into one of the small chests, a voice crackled from a speaker place over the door Jim had not noticed before. "**Attention students. There will be a meeting in the galley in exactly ten minutes! Do **_**not**_** be late and be sure to be in your uniforms. That is all.**"

Gordon and Jim met eyes and Jim began joining the quest to stuff B.E.N. into the suddenly incredibly small chest.



Jim sat sandwiched between Gordon and an over-sized, orange man with a long face and a thick, kangaroo-like tail. He did not touch the food set before him, and nudged Gordon when he did. He told Gordon that it was disrespectful to eat before the highest ranking officer. When he told the Rettilian this, others around them set their food down sheepishly.

They cast their gaze to the raised platform in front of the long galley tables. Several official-looking men with stern and jovial expressions alike sat in chairs upon it. The two center chairs, however, remained empty.

The buzz of chatter was silenced as the door to the galley slammed open, causing a thunder-like clap to grate on the ears of the new students. Two men walked, straight backed, to the stage. One, a burly man with many scars and blue skin wore the bright red coat of the first-mate. The other was completely covered in clothes, but Jim could still make out the blue of a captain's garb.

The men took their time walking to the center of the stage, the brawny first mate stood at attention as the captain stood still, seemingly watching the crowd. Slowly, a gloved hand rose to the hat. As the great, floppy thing was removed, there was a collected gasp from the 'audience'.

From the neck of the captain's jumble of clothes reared a great lion head. Golden fur stretched across the lion's face. The scarlet mane that characterized 'normal' lions was pulled back, away from his face and tied into a tight braid, which could not have been more than the width of two fingers across and the length of one. Cunning, blue eyes glared out at its spectators as they swept about the room. Jim's eyes widened in surprise as the lion's head turned slightly; across the lion's wide nose was a great, dark scar that ran from the nose to its left eyebrow, cutting across one of the blue eyes. He looked every bit the seasoned warrior captain that Jim knew he was.

The Captain began marching back and forth across the small expanse of the stage, the whole time glaring out at his audience. He crossed the stage twice, first one way then the other, before he began to speak in a rough, deep voice.

"For fifty years, I have ridden the space winds. I have crossed the foulest pirates ye will ever hear of. I have looked creatures in the eye as my sword found new sheaths in their gizzards. I have come so close to sun that the hair burned from my back I have ridden supernova's, pulled away from black holes, and jumped asteroid belts."

He paused a moment as a ripple of murmurs could be heard throughout the room; this was impressive to many of the new students, many of which had never even been on a ship before. He was trying to scare the new recruits. Amelia had told Jim all about this. No doubt that the lion had actually done those things, but he wanted to find the quitters and weed them out before they were too far in over their heads.

The lion coughed a loud, hacking sound that quieted the room in less than three seconds. He recovered from his cough and straightened himself as much as possible, though he still seemed stooped from where Jim was sitting.

"If you will notice, your clothes are brown and black. I have always dressed my new recruits in brown and black. Always; even when I captained my own vessel, until they had earned their colors. Brown is the color of order and convention. You will work as a team under my rules and will be responsible for keeping order upon this ship."

He coughed once again. "Black is the color of obscurity. You are all insignificant little wretches. I could make you walk the plank, surrendering you to the vacuum of space. No one would care."

This caused a general unrest among the students. Surely someone would care if they had gone missing. There parents would notify authorities; their friends would notice the lack of letters. He would not dare through them out into space.

The Captain smiled unkindly. "Oh yes, I could throw you out into space and you will not be missed. No one of importance would care. I'm protected; you're not."

The first mate, who had been standing unobtrusively beside the chair set out for him cleared his throat almost inaudibly. The Captain stopped pacing, which he had begun sometime during his speech.

"Any of you who do not think that you are fit for the job, get off at the next port and there'll be a ship ready to take you back to your mommies and daddies. Until then, stay out of everyone else's way."

He began to walk off the stage, but seemed to remember something. He looked back over his shoulder at his captive audience. "And for those of you who remain, don't get on my bad side; the vacuum of space awaits!" he said the last part cheerfully, and walked from the stage coughing and laughing.

**A/N: Whew, I finally got this out. (Wipes sweat from brow)**

**Muse: Good. NOW GO WRITE ANOTHER!**

**Me: AWWWWWWWW. **

**Muse: Review!**


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